Season's Greetings From Space: 1970

Best wishes from R2-D2, C-3PO and all of the busy droids and robots here at Space: 1970. Have fun, stay safe, and we'll see you all here again after the holidays - whichever holidays you celebrate - with a lot more sci-fi memories from the analog age!

Ship Of Lights

Things are likely going to be a little quiet here at Space: 1970 for the next few days. Here's wishing all Star Kids - no matter who they are or where they're from - a peaceful and joyous holiday season.

Captain's bLog: Supplemental

•  I'm a big fat, lousy liar. I promised that if the world didn't end today, I'd post my long-delayed review of The Omega Man this afternoon. But I'm not going to do it. Not today.

Fact is, I'm not feeling well, and I just don't think I'm up to re-watching the movie, writing a long post, and then taking and formatting screenshots. Also, I have to make a long drive early tomorrow morning, so I think I need to get some rest this evening and hit the sack early tonight.

I'll try and get it posted right after the holiday (maybe before, but I'm not going to count on it). Your patience is appreciated.

•  In completely unrelated news, I received a copy of The Humanoid in the mail yesterday and watched it last night. I actually thought it was slightly better than its reputation.

The sets, locations, costumes and miniatures (derivative as many of them were) were surprisingly decent, and Barbara Bach as the evil Lady Agatha was just stunningly hot, even with her funky hairdo. Hell, I even liked the robot dog. My only real complaint is that there weren't enough space battles!

Ultimately, although it wasn't as much giddy fun as Starcrash, I enjoyed it, and am grateful to have finally seen it. One of these days (maybe after New Years), I'll write it up properly.

Captain's bLog: 1217.12

•   Obit: I begin this Captain's bLog with some sad news. I've learned that actress Dolores Mantez, who portrayed lovely Lieutenant Nina Barry, the purple-wigged moonbase commander on Gerry Anderson's 1970 series UFO, passed away in November.

She appeared in 23 of the series 26 episodes, with probably her most memorable appearance being in "Sub Smash," a tension-filled hour of drama where her character was trapped on a crippled SHADO submarine with Ed Bishop's Commander Straker and very little air.

Although a busy actress on British television during the Sixties, she retired from acting in 1972 to devote her attentions to her family. Rest in peace, Ms. Mantez.

•   Star Wars Graphic Novel Giveaway: While I remain disappointed in how few of the folks who entered actually followed directions - even after I repeated the instructions - I'm otherwise pleased by the overall response to this first Space: 1970 Giveaway. After disqualifying all the entries that didn't follow the rules, I randomly drew the winning name of Star Kid Mark Holmes, from far-off Willingboro, New Jersey.

Sometime in the next few days, I'll be shipping out the Dark Horse Star Wars Omnibus Vol. 2 and the adaptations of Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back. Keep an eye on the mail, Mark!

 •  Press: Last friday, Huffington Post blogger Jason Apuzzo wrote an article about the upcoming Disney Star Wars sequels and 70s science fiction cinema. I enjoyed the article for the most part (especially the parts that seemed to be borrowed from - or at least influenced by - my writings here), but the best part was that he included a link to Space: 1970 at the end of his post. This resulted in a nice uptick in hits from new readers. Hopefully, some of them stuck around!

•  Blatant Cross-Promotion: And here's my usual shameless plug: anyone who enjoys my writing and the DVD reviews on this blog  should check out my DVD Late Show site, where I have been reviewing B-movies, cult films and genre television shows on DVD and Blu-ray disc since 2005. Among the over 700 reviews on the site are plenty of Space: 1970-era favorites, like Battle Beyond The Stars, Damnation Alley, Starcrash, The Starlost, the Space: 1999 Blu-rays, and many more. 

STAR WARS Graphic Novel Giveaway

Thanks to a donation from a generous Space: 1970 reader, I have extra copies of three Dark Horse Star Wars graphic novels/collections that I'm going to give away to some lucky Star Kid this holiday season. If it all goes smoothly, I may do more of these giveaways in the future.

For this first Space: 1970 Giveaway, I have the 1997 graphic novel adaptation of the first Star Wars movie by writer Bruce Jones and artists Eduardo Barreto and Al Williamson, the 1997 trade paperback of the original Marvel Comics adaptation of The Empire Strikes Back by Archie Goodwin & Al Williamson, and the Star Wars Omnibus Volume Two, which collects issues #28 through #49 of the original Marvel Comics Star Wars comic book series from the 70s-80s. These are not mint condition collectibles, but very good reading copies.

To simplify things, I'll be picking only one winner for all three books.

All you have to do to qualify for the random drawing is a.) be a U.S. resident (sorry!) and b.) send an e-mail containing your name and mailing address to chris@atomicpulp.com with the words "SPACE:1970 GIVEAWAY" in the subject line. One entry will be chosen at random, and I'll mail the graphic novels to the lucky winner. Entries must be received before midnight, Friday, December 14, 2012. The winner will be announced here on Monday the 17th. Good luck!

One entry per person, please. Double entries will be disqualified. Entries that do not follow the above instructions precisely will be disqualified and discarded. A winner will be drawn at random and announced on December 17, 2012. The winner's name will be posted here at space1970.blogspot.com and they will be notified via email. All entries will be deleted immediately after the contest’s close, and no personal information will be retained or transmitted to any third parties. The contest is open to U.S. residents only. Prizes will be shipped via media mail. Unfortunately, Space: 1970 cannot assume responsibility for items lost or damaged in transit.

ADDENDUM: I'm having to discard almost half the entries because people aren't reading the directions closely. You must include your full name and mailing address in your e-mail, or I chuck it. Period. 

ADDENDUM II: Sorry for sounding so grumpy above; I was frustrated.

Captain's bLog: 1129.12

•   Thanks to a couple of generous Star Kids who donated to the Space: 1970 fund, I've finally picked up the Universal DVD of 1972's Silent Running and scored a complete set of Project U.F.O. episodes. It's hard to believe that I didn't already have a copy of Silent Running in my vast video collection... but that oversight has now been rectified. One of these days, I'll get around to writing an article/review.

The unauthorized Project U.F.O. discs I have acquired are sourced from 80's Australian television airings (on the TV1 network), and all carry the original title. While a commenter has promised to send me screen captures to prove that the show did air as Project Blue Book in its second season in England... I'm still waiting. And that U.K. exception wouldn't explain why North American viewers remember it under that alternate title.  After watching nearly the whole series again, I'm convinced that people are simply misremembering - the characters in the show use the phrase "Project Blue Book" extensively, and I suspect that constant verbal reinforcement is what imprinted on young viewers' minds.

As for the show itself, the multi-generational bootleg copies I have look terrible - which is unfortunate because I can't really enjoy Brick Price's terrific spaceship miniatures - but the stories are far more engaging than I expected. I prefer first season lead William Jordan over the second season's Edward Winter - I think it's because I can't shake the image of Winter's M*A*S*H character, Colonel Flagg out of my head. I just find him "insincere." Jordan, on the other hand, is both warm and authoritative, and very convincing as an open-minded but rational investigator. Second lead Caskey Swaim is all Southern good 'ol boy charm, and it's a shame he didn't have much of a film/television career.

The writing is formulaic, typically dry Jack Webb-styled stuff, and the production is often remarkably sloppy, with bad editorial match-up of live-action and effects footage, and some of the worst day-for-night photography ever seen. There's a lot of terrific guest stars, though, including Space: 1970 vets Anne Lockhart (Battlestar Galactica), Jared Martin (The Fantastic Journey), Malachi Throne, Booth Coleman (Planet Of The Apes TV series), Barbara Luna (Star Trek, Buck Rogers), Eric Braeden (Escape From The Planet Of The Apes), Morgan Woodward (Battle Beyond The Stars), Craig Stevens (The Invisible Man), Tiiu Leek (Starship Invasions), James Olsen (Moon Zero Two) Pamelyn Ferdin (Star Trek, Space Academy) and many more, including Richard O'Brien (Rocky Horror, Flash Gordon) & Angus Scrimm (Phantasm) as faux MIBs!

•  Other Projects Of Interest: Aside from blogging about old TV shows and movies, I occasionally write comic books. For a number of years now, one of the comic book projects I've been trying to get off the ground is a space opera graphic novel called Perils On Planet X.

While it owes a great deal to the interplanetary swashbucklers of Edgar Rice Burroughs (specifically, the John Carter of Mars stories) and his imitators (like Lin Carter, Otis Adelbert Kline, et al) it also incorporates plenty of influences from the sci-fi shows and movies of the Space: 1970 era, especially Flash Gordon (animated series and feature film), Blackstar, Buck Rogers, etc. The artist of Perils On Planet X is the very talented Gene Gonzales.

It is been in the works for a long time (several years, in fact), and it's roughly half finished. The current plan is to serialize it online in 2013 and perhaps try a Kickstarter campaign to finance a print edition. It's an action-packed adventure with rayguns, jetpacks, sexy space princesses, sexy alien pirate queens, and monstrous reptilian monsters. When it's ready to launch, I'll be sure to post the news here on the blog.

•  Blatant Cross-Promotion: And here's my usual shameless plug: anyone who enjoys my writing and the DVD reviews on this blog  should check out my DVD Late Show site, where I have been reviewing B-movies, cult films and genre television shows on DVD and Blu-ray disc since 2005. Among the over 700 reviews on the site are plenty of Space: 1970-era favorites, like Battle Beyond The Stars, Damnation Alley, Starcrash, The Starlost, the Space: 1999 Blu-rays, and many more.

Space: 1970 - Year Four

Welcome back! Today marks the third anniversary of the Space: 1970 blog, and the beginning of its fourth "season," which means that it's lasted longer than most of the shows I write about here! Somehow, I managed to come up with another 12 months worth of posts about the science fiction films and television shows - and related memorabilia - of the 1970s and early 80s (closing rapidly on 700 entries now), so I guess maybe I can keep this thing going... for a while longer, anyway.

Since launching this blog in 2009, almost every movie and television series from the Space: 1970 era has made its way to home video in the digital format. There are still a few MIA titles (Starship Invasions, The Fantastic Journey, Project UFO, and...?), but it's really quite remarkable how many of our childhood favorites are now out there, considering how few were available back when I started this thing. I'd like to pretend that I helped some of those movies and shows escape from the studio vaults, but I know that's not so. Still...maybe I helped sell a few copies for those folks.

There are still some 70s sci-fi movies that I've barely touched on here (Silent Running, Rollerball, Soylent Green, CE3K, Moonraker, etc.), and lots of memorabilia (and memories) to unearth. In fact, I've got almost a dozen substantial posts in the works, just waiting for me to finish the time-consuming chores of researching and assembling material. I'll also have some new reviews as soon as I can make time to grab (and format) the screen shots to illustrate them.

For the next year (as I always hope), I'll try to post more essays, reviews and features (like Fave Fives, Polls and Space Babes). I know we all dig the posters, ads, magazine/comics covers and other pop culture artifacts - they're powerful memory triggers - but I want this blog to be more than just a scrapbook. We'll have to see how I do.

So, thanks to everyone who stops by Space: 1970 regularly, for your enthusiasm, encouragement, and (the most appreciated) your good manners. It's nice to have a place online where stuff like Quark, Jason Of Star Command, Buck Rogers and even my beloved Starcrash, can be discussed without undue condescension and cynical snark. I sincerely appreciate it.

I hope you'll stop by tomorrow for November's Space Babe....

Captain's bLog: 1023.12

•  Hard to believe I haven't posted one of these "Captain's bLog" entries since August. I know that posting's been a bit light over the last two months, as well. Hopefully, with luck, my productivity will increase a bit in the coming months, and I'll be able to finish up some of the posts I've slowly been working on. I've also somehow neglected to post any new "Space Babes" since August, but I've got a great choice already picked out for November. Stay tuned!

•  Check This Out: The Super Saturday Short-Lived Show Showcase blog (which is pretty much exactly what it sounds like) is currently running episode-by-episode reviews of the Richard Benjamin sci-fi comedy series, Quark. Bloggers Anthony Williams and Noel Thingvall are watching the show for the first time and sharing their opinions of each episode on a weekly basis. It's a cool site, and well worth checking out.

I'm really enjoying their reviews and encourage them to take a whack at a few other short-lived Space: 1970 favorites in the future, like The Fantastic Journey, The Phoenix, and Salvage I. Of course, as none of those shows are commercially available on home video, that might prove a little difficult...

•  New on DVD: The two big 70's genre DVD releases for October are: 1.) the wide release (after a couple months as a Best Buy exclusive) of the second season of The Six Million Dollar Man, which hit shelves a couple weeks ago, and 2.) the complete Filmation live-action Shazam! Saturday morning series, from Warner Archive, which went on sale this week.

I hope to get my hands on the Shazam! discs shortly, and when I do, I'll definitely be reviewing them here at Space: 1970.

As for The Six Million Dollar Man S2 set, I picked it up at Best Buy a month or so ago. If you haven't bought it yet, here's a handy Amazon Link: The Six Million Dollar Man: Season 2
 
•  Blatant Cross-Promotion: And here's my usual shameless plug: anyone who enjoys my writing and reviews on this blog  should check out my DVD Late Show site, where I have been reviewing B-movies, cult films and genre television shows on DVD and Blu-ray disc since 2005. Among the over 700 reviews on the site are plenty of Space: 1970-era favorites, like Battle Beyond The Stars, Damnation Alley, Starcrash, The Starlost, the Space: 1999 Blu-rays, and many more.

Captain's bLog: 0822.12

• Coming Attractions: I've been plugging away on a few more substantial posts for this site, and with luck, they'll start showing up here over the next few weeks. Specifically, a review of the British/German series Star Maidens,  a new "Fave Five," my long-promised review of Strange New World, and equally long-promised article about the aborted Star Trek II (a/k/a "Phase II") television series. There will probably be a new poll in September, and I've got another "Favorite Episode" piece nearly done. Fingers crossed (though it makes it harder to type).  

•  A Few Words About Comments: This may sound cranky or curmudgeonly, but as I close in on my half-century mark, I think I'm entitled to a bit of, uh, curmudgeoness. Anyway, I'm trying to be more selective about which comments I approve for publication on this blog. Over the last two and a half years, the reader comments posted to this blog have overwhelmingly been in line with my intentions for the site: enthusiastic, celebratory, nostalgic and, generally, upbeat. We've also remained virtually troll-free. But recently, I'm finding myself slightly less happy with the "interactive" aspect of this blog.

Perhaps it's inevitable that as readership grows, I'm going to see more comments show up in my e-mail box for moderation that I'm uncomfortable with or that, frankly, just irritate me. I'm even thinking about disallowing "Anonymous" posting entirely, as most (though not all) of the comments that bug me are posted without a name attached. I haven't taken that step yet, but I'm considering it.

So, for the record, here are the types of comments I'm not likely to approve:

• People selling something. That's not what this site is about. Try ebay. Related: people trying to find out what their memorabilia is worth. Again, that's not what this site is about. There are hundreds of other places online that are more appropriate for that kind of question. Use Google. That's what it's for.

• Linking to illegal downloads/bootleg merchandise. I've actually addressed this before. Comments that link to torrent sites or unauthorized video dealers will not be approved. No moral judgement here; I just don't want to have this site hosting those sort of links.

• Non sequiturs. Okay, this is the one that's really driving me nuts lately. I've been seeing a lot of comments recently that I simply cannot make any sense of whatsoever. I understand that this site can be accessed all over the world, and English isn't everyone's first language - but I can usually tell when that is the problem. Far more often, I get comments that simply repeat the information I wrote about in the post (as if the commenter only looked at the headline and/or illustration before clicking the comment tab, feeling compelled to show off his knowledge of the subject) or utterly nonsensical comments that, well, indicate serious weaknesses in reading comprehension. If you're going to take the time and make the effort to comment on something I've posted here, please think about it a bit, and make it worthwhile.

 • Negativity. You know, I understand that not everyone likes the movies and television shows and other stuff I write about on this blog; some people outright hate them. Others think they're "cheesy" (a word that really bugs me and automatically raises my defensive shields), "lame," or just trash. And yes, everyone is entitled to their own opinion. But this blog isn't the place to tell the world how crappy you think The Starlost is, or for expressing your ironic sense of post-modern snark. In the header at the top of this page, I use the word "celebrate," and that's what this blog is about. If you think the original Battlestar Galactica is lame, or that Starcrash is the Worst Movie Ever, write about it on your own site, or go find an appropriate message board somewhere. This is a blog, and, more to the point, it's my blog, and I'm not going to stand for people coming in and being jerks in my house.

This doesn't mean we can't have some good-natured fun with these shows, or acknowledge their flaws and amusing defects, but the key words there are "good-natured." (And don't send me angry comments about me not respecting your freedom of speech, or me being too cowardly to hear differing opinions. A. This isn't a public forum, and B. I really don't particularly care about the opinions of anonymous strangers.)

Please do keep sharing your own Star Kid memories in the comments, or passing on cool behind-the-scenes information, and politely correcting factual errors I make. And please, have fun with (and make fun of) these shows and movies. Just try and keep it... affectionate. That's the word I'm looking for, I guess.

ADDENDUM:  I'm also not saying that people can't disagree with my opinions. That's cool. Just be polite about it, okay? 

•  Blatant Cross-Promotion: As usual, here's my standard pitch: anyone who enjoys my writing and reviews on this blog  should check out my DVD Late Show site, where I have been reviewing B-movies, cult films and genre television shows on DVD and Blu-ray disc since 2005. Among the over 700 reviews are plenty of Space: 1970-era favorites, like Battle Beyond The Stars, Damnation Alley, Starcrash, The Starlost, the Space: 1999 Blu-rays, and many more.

Captain's bLog: 0803.12

•  July was the biggest month ever here at Space: 1970, both in number of items posted and in traffic/pageviews. Somehow, after the relative blogging drought earlier this year, I managed to somehow come up with 49 posts in July - a personal best. Don't expect me to keep it up, though; I've got a big writing project on my desk this month (my first pulp novel) that will undoubtedly cut into my blogging activities. Still, I'll do my best not to neglect this site too much.

Over on Facebook, the Space: 1970 fan page surpassed 1,000 "Likes," while the blog itself garnered over 42,000 pageviews in July. Another milestone this month was the most generous Paypal contribution from a Space: 1970 reader yet - it allowed me to buy the second season of The Six Million Dollar Man far sooner than I'd anticipated, and made it possible for me to order the new Warlords Of Atlantis DVD from the UK. Look for reviews of both items here on the site soon. (BTW, if you'd like to contribute to the site, the "Tip" button is in the sidebar to the right, just beneath Princess Ardala - an enviable position, to be sure.)

I also want to thank every person who has used the Amazon links on this site to make purchases of vintage sci-fi on DVD/Blu-ray. Getting that little kickback from Amazon every month helps me rationalize all the time and effort I put into this otherwise non-paying endeavor. It really helps and is greatly appreciated.

•  Speaking of DVD reviews, I finally got my Invisible Man review up a few days ago. I'm about halfway through the Star Maidens DVDs that I ordered from England, so I should get a review of that series posted sometime this month. It's an "interesting" show, and I'm glad I picked it up.

•  Finally, the usual Blatant Cross-Promotion: Anyone who enjoys my writing and reviews on this blog  should check out my DVD Late Show site, where I have been reviewing B-movies, cult films and genre television shows on DVD and Blu-ray disc since 2005. Among the over 700 reviews are plenty of Space: 1970-era favorites, like Battle Beyond The Stars, Damnation Alley, Starcrash, The Starlost, the Space: 1999 Blu-rays, and many more.

Rant: Wilma Deering, From Colonel To Carhop

While I don't hate (too strong a word to describe my disappointment) the second season of Buck Rogers In the 25th Century, I do despise what the producers and writers did to Erin Gray's character of Wilma Deering. In the first season, she was a military professional, portrayed as competent, courageous, and compassionate, with a charmingly sly sense of humor. Her form-fitting uniforms accentuated her sexuality, absolutely, but they also seemed somehow more empowering than exploitative. (Especially since most of the men dressed the same way.)

In the second season, her character became considerably less interesting. Whereas in the first year, she had been one of the top-ranking officers (if not the top-ranking one) of Earth's Defense Force, year two had her assigned to the crew of the Searcher starship, where her duties were ill-defined, but usually involved opening hailing frequencies, looking worried, or sweating a lot while she waited for the men to save the ship from the peril of the week. We rarely saw her on missions, and I don't think she even piloted a fighter once in the whole second year. Her uniform - complete with skirt - made her look like a drive-in carhop.

Erin Gray is an icon of the Space: 1970 era, not just because she looked stunning in spandex, but because her Wilma Deering, while not always served well by the scripts, was still a memorably strong character. Over the 21 episodes of Buck's first season the actress managed to convincingly portray a genuine evolution from cold, remote military automaton to a warm, humorous, full-blooded woman, equal to the series' male lead in every way. Hell, the best-written moment of the season's last episode had Gray's character come right out and acknowledge that evolution... and Gray nails the scene.

That sort of character work was especially rare in network television of the era.

Too bad that when the re-tooled series came back for its second year, Wilma's character regressed to the stereotypes of 50s and 60s sci-fi, narratively subservient to the male characters, dressed in outfits that emphasized the sterotypes of her gender, virtually reduced to window dressing in the background.

I mean, there are a lot of problems with Buck's sophomore season, but it's the treatment of Gray's character that irritates me the most.

And... this has been your aging fanboy rant for the week. Funny, I started out just wanting to post a couple of publicity shots of the lovely Ms. Gray (because, let's face it - that's what most people come here for in the first place), but the differences between the outfits (and character attitude) in the two stills just started to get under my skin....

Post #600 - Same As The First

This marks my 600th post since I started this blog on the first of November, 2009. Since that time, the readership of this site has grown to then-inconceivable size, and I still can't quite believe that anyone cares enough to stop by here regularly to read my silly remembrances and ramblings. But a surprising number of you folks do, and I thank you. To commemorate this (and because I obviously missed recognizing my 500th post), here's... a rerun. The very first post I wrote for this blog, which I guess you can look at as a reaffirmation/re-statement of my intentions with this site.. Here's to the next 600!

The Good Stuff.

If I had been born five or ten years earlier, I most certainly would have been a "Monster Kid," haunting the local newstand for the latest issue of Famous Monsters Of Filmland, scouring the TV Guide listings for Creature Features or Shock Theater showings, and clumsily building Aurora model kits of Dracula, Frankenstein, The Mummy and Quasimodo.

As it turned out, I didn't become a "Monster Kid" until I was nearly 30.

I was born in 1965. By the time I was five or six years old, the monster fad of the 60s had mostly faded away. The Groovie Goolies were still rockin' on Saturday morning, but I was more interested in the Star Trek cartoon (from the same studio), and, when I could find them, reruns of the live-action Trek.

By the time I was ten, I had already collected numerous Star Trek books - James Blish and Alan Dean Foster's short story adaptations, The Making of, The Concordance, The New Voyages, The Technical Manual. Then, one of our local stations starting airing Space: 1999. I loved it, and poured over the television listings for more sci-fi. The Planet of the Apes movies, TV series and cartoons, Logan's Run. Then, a year or so later -- Star Wars.

Christmas '78 I received three record albums - my first ever - the Star Wars, Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Battlestar Galactica soundtrack LPs. I started spending my allowance on Starlog and Fantastic Films magazines. I had model kits of all the Star Wars, Galactica and Buck Rogers space ships. I bought the movie novelizations and would use my old cassette recorder to make audio recordings of my favorite sci-fi TV shows.

From the newspaper, I clipped out movie advertisements for Message From Space, The Black Hole and Alien -- and pasted them in a photo album along with TV Guide ads for Galactica (painted by Frank Frazetta!), Quark, and Buck Rogers... and telefilms like The Martian Chronicles and Brave New World.

I was a nut for anything sci-fi, and back then, it wasn't cool. I took massive amounts of abuse from my peers. If I was caught with a Star Trek paperback in school by a my classmates, it was all but guaranteed that it would be shredded by lunch. I was called all sorts of things -- most of them pretty awful.

But I had my magazines and audio cassettes and paperback novelizations and my model kits and comic books... and somehow I survived.

This blog is devoted to those science fiction films and shows that were such a large part of my childhood. I loved those programs, and still do today. In fact, I enjoy them as much now as I ever did, and prefer them over most modern genre product. (Guess which Battlestar I think is the better one?) I still admire the handcrafted model spaceships and stop-motion animated monsters (you won't ever find the word "cheesy"used to describe those effects here!), the gallant space heroes and sizzling space babes, the comic relief robots (Twiki! Peepo!) and the sense of wonder those shows stirred in me.

I don't expect that I'll be posting to this blog often. In fact, many of the initial posts will probably be revised versions of pieces that I've written before that appeared elsewhere. But when I do feel like writing about one of those childhood favorite space operas, I'll be doing it here instead of at one of my other sites.

Journey with me back to when the future was...fun!

Captain's bLog: Supplemental

A few quick notes....

•  With a little luck, my new DVD of The Black Hole will arrive in the mail today or tomorrow. With the passing of co-star Ernest Borgnine over the weekend, I'm particularly eager to revisit the film. I've always felt that the cast was one of the genuine joys of the movie, and Borgnine's reporter, Harry Booth, was a somewhat unusual character for a space-based film. I always wondered how he was filing his articles...

•  We also saw the passing of actor Andy Griffith last week, which put me in mind of his Space: 1970-era genre television series, 1979's Salvage 1. Griffith played salvage expert Harry Broderick, who, with the aide of a couple of ex-NASA experts (Joel Higgins and Trish Stewart) built a spaceship (the Vulture) out of junkyard scraps and traveled to the moon to salvage all the equipment left there after the Apollo space missions.

I remember being really excited about the original TV movie/pilot that January, and forcing my cousins to watch it since I was staying over at their house that weekend. Once it went to series (a very short-lived series), I found it much less compelling as the subsequent stories were considerably more Earthbound. Still, it has stuck in my memory, and I probably should have mentioned it here earlier.

As for Griffith, he was as charming and amiable in Salvage 1 as he was in most of the other productions he appeared in. He wasn't the sort of actor generally cast in genre shows, but he did have a memorable role in the first season Bionic Woman episode, "Angel of Mercy."

• Well, a couple of days ago, I went ahead and ordered the Region 2 DVDs of the 1975 British-German series Star Maidens with some early birthday cash I received from my generous mother-in-law. I've only seen one episode - on YouTube - but it was enough to let me know that, aesthetically anyway, the show is right up my alley. Pure. Seventies. Style.

Hopefully, the DVDs will be here in a week or so. I'm looking forward to reviewing it here, too.

• Blu-ray.com has posted an advance review of Warners' forthcoming Outland Blu-ray disc. From the sound of it, it is a quantum leap in quality over the old, and sub-par even for its age, DVD. Apparently, there's a very informative audio commentary track by writer/director Peter Hyams, as well, who reportedly acknowledges the film's debt to Ridley Scott's Alien in its look and feel. I've always said that it didn't take much to pretend that Outland and Alien took place in the same universe...

•  I did recently get my hands on an affordable "previously-viewed" set of the Star Wars "Original Trilogy" Blu-rays. While I - like many first-generation SW fans - am more than a little annoyed at the fact that George Lucas didn't choose to make the original cuts of the films available on the discs alongside the Special Edition versions (and also made additional digital alterations to those!), I have to admit, that it's very nice to see those characters (and spaceships, etc.) in nigh-flawless high definition.

•  Oh, and I finally finished watching The Invisible Man DVDs! Look for a review here later this week.

The Envelope, Please....

And... the results of our most recent Space: 1970 Reader's Poll are in!

A week or so ago, I posed the musical question: "Which 70's LIVE ACTION Super-hero Show Or TV Movie Was YOUR Favorite?" For the purposes of this poll, I excluded "on the cusp" characters like bionic Steve Austin & Jaime Sommers and Atlantean Mark Harris, and chose to limit the choices to a.) characters directly derived from super-hero comic books (including the non-costumed Hulk), and b.) characters that had distinct super-hero identities/costumes (i.e. Isis, Electra Woman).

With an astounding 291 votes cast, the winner is: The Incredible Hulk, with an even One Hundred votes! I voted for The Hulk, myself; not only was it a terrifically fun show, the Bill Bixby-Lou Ferrigno series was one of the most successful genre shows of the decade.

In the early days of balloting, the Green Goliath was running neck-and-neck with second-place winner, The New Adventures of Wonder Woman, starring the eternally-beautiful Lynda Carter. WW ultimately ended up with a very respectable 74 votes. In fact, for the first half of the week, the two CBS shows were never separated by more than a single vote. But sometime around last Thursday, the Hulk received a boost of Gamma radiation, I guess, and surged ahead to victory.

Tying for third place were the Saturday morning classic, Shazam! and prime-time's The Amazing Spider-Man, with 23 votes apiece. To my delight, every nominated show garnered at least a couple of votes, even that goofy Hanna-Barbara Legend Of The Super-Heroes! I was genuinely surprised to find Isis so low in the tabulations - even Electra Woman & Dyna Girl beat the Egyptian goddess by a single vote!

Thanks to everyone who participated! Keep visiting the site - you never know when I might post another Space: 1970 Poll!

Buying THE BLACK HOLE (1979) DVD... Again

Another glimpse into the life of an aging Star Kid:

I've had the Anchor Bay DVD of Disney's 1979 space opera The Black Hole ever since it came out back in 1999. While the disc does include a widescreen version of the movie, it was not enhanced for 16x9 displays. That was fine for me back in '99 - I didn't have a 16x9 TV. But I do now, and last time I tried to watch the disc, I was really annoyed by the lack of anamorphic enhancement.

So, anyway, I have a birthday coming up, so I ordered myself a copy of the Disney DVD re-issue of The Black Hole that came out in '04. I know that it has one bonus feature (a behind-the-scenes featurette) - which is one more than the AB disc had - and an anamorphic widescreen transfer, so it is something of an upgrade.

And yes, I am well aware that the '04 disc wasn't restored or remastered, so it still contains all the visual flaws and is basically the same transfer as the earlier Anchor Bay edition, but... at least it will display properly.

Once I told my wife that I'd purchased a second "upgraded" copy of the movie she looked at me and said, cynically, "You know, now that you've spent money on it again, they're probably going to announce a Blu-ray version."

I smiled and replied, "Man, I hope so."

Captain's bLog: 0702.12

• Star Kid Kurt Belcher dropped me a line over on Facebook to let me know that the first issue of the relaunched GEEK magazine, on newsstands now, included a brief, but positive, mention of the Space: 1970 blog in its "Web" section. As always, it's nice when the site gets noticed by quote real world unquote media, and while it was a very small mention, it was nicely spotlighted on the page (right above the Mego Museum, one of this Star Kid's favorite sites). 

•  Poll: This is the last day to vote in our current Readers' Poll. If you haven't cast your ballot yet, you'll find it over at the top of the right-hand sidebar. If you read Space: 1970 only through an RSS feed, you'll have to come to the site to vote.   

•  Netflix News: Space: 1970 favorites Starcrash and Battle Beyond The Stars (along with a bunch of other Roger Corman-produced/distributed B-films), are now available on Netflix Instant Play in the United States.

These movies join such 70s TV staples as Jason Of Star Command, Buck Rogers In The 25th Century, The Incredible Hulk, Star Blazers, Battlestar Galactica Classic & Galactica: 1980 on the company's Instant program. It's almost like being a kid again... except it's better, because now you can watch them anytime you want! 

•   Support Space: This site now has over 400 followers here on Blogger, and the Facebook Fan Page recently topped 950 "Likes," although I'm not sure how many people that "Like" the Facebook page actually ever visit the site. It seems like most of them just "Like" the various pix I post over there.

I also want to thank every person who has used the Amazon links on this site to make purchases of vintage sci-fi on DVD/Blu-ray (and the few who've made Paypal donations - if you'd like to contribute, there's a link in the right-hand sidebar).

•  Blatant Cross-Promotion: Anyone who enjoys my writing and reviews on this site should check out my DVD Late Show site, where I have been reviewing B-movies, cult films and genre television shows on DVD and Blu-ray disc since 2005. Among the over 700 reviews are plenty of Space: 1970-era favorites, like Battle Beyond The Stars, Damnation Alley, Starcrash, The Starlost, the Space: 1999 Blu-rays, and many more.

New Space: 1970 Poll: Heroes & Heroines

Hey, Star Kids, it's time for another reader poll! Our last poll, way back in November, asked whether the Space: 1970 blog should include the super-hero shows and movies of the era in its sci-fi coverage. The answer was a resounding "YES!," so I've been mixing some super-hero material into the site over the last few months.

As a follow-up, this poll asks: "Which 70's LIVE ACTION Super-hero Show Or TV Movie Was YOUR Favorite?" Note, I'm only asking about non-animated television programs and made-for-TV movies/specials, so no Superman - the Movie write-in votes, please. You'll find it over in the right-hand sidebar, right on top. You only get one vote, so make it count!

If I forgot to include something, be sure and let me know here in the comments (as if I'd expect anything less).

Captain's bLog: 0530.12

•  Once again, sorry that posting's been erratic over the last few months. I can't promise that I'll do better, but looking back over the blog history, it seems that I always slack off a bit in the Spring, only to rebound in the Summer with a flurry of activity. So, history's on my side. And I do have some cool stuff in the works. Specifically: a new Reader's Poll. A new "Fave Five." The long-promised DVD review of the Warner Archive edition of the 1975 sci-fi television pilot, Strange New World, the third and final installment of Warner Brothers' "PAX Trilogy." A look at the aborted Star Trek II television series from the point of view of this then-12-year old who was really disappointed when it didn't materialize. A review of the 1982  Antonio Margheriti genre mash-up, Yor, The Hunter From The Future, now available from Sony's manufactured-to-order DVD line. A Space Wars magazine cover gallery! Moonraker! Stay tuned, Star Kids!

• I still haven't gotten my hands on the David McCallum Invisible Man DVD set, but it's high on my wish list. If anyone's picked it up already, I'd appreciate a report on the picture and sound quality. The company putting it out is unfamiliar to me, so I'm wary.

•   Stats 'n Stuff: This site now has over 400 followers here on Blogger, and the Facebook Fan Page recently topped 900 "Likes." I genuinely appreciate the support! I also want to thank every person who has used the Amazon links on this site to make purchases of vintage sci-fi on DVD/Blu-ray (and the few who've made Paypal donations - if you'd like to contribute, there's a link in the right-hand sidebar).

•  Shameless Self-Promotion: Anyone who enjoys my writing and reviews on this site should check out my DVD Late Show site, where I have been reviewing B-movies, cult films and genre television shows on DVD and Blu-ray disc since 2005. Among the over 700 reviews are plenty of Space: 1970-era favorites, like Battle Beyond The Stars, Damnation Alley, Starcrash, The Starlost, the Space: 1999 Blu-rays, and many more.

Captain's bLog: 0409.12

•  Wow. I have no idea where the winter went. I have no good excuses for my lack of posting over the last couple of months. For whatever reasons, other things were demanding my attentions, and Space: 1970 was unfortunately neglected. In any case, I'm planning to get back to regular updates immediately, and for those who stuck around during the drought, I appreciate your patience. 

•  Obit: I want to comment on the passing of Ralph McQuarrie last month. As the concept artist for Star Wars, Close Encounters Of The Third Kind, Battlestar Galactica and Star Trek: Phase 2/Star Trek - The Motion Picture, it could be fairly said, I think, that he defined for many of us the "look" of Seventies sci-fi. Hell, his rejected Viper designs for Galactica ended up being used on Buck Rogers, so his influence even extended directly into that series as well.

R.I.P. Mr. McQuarrie... and thanks.

•  On sale this week in the U.S. is the official DVD release of the 1977 Logan's Run television series. The 3-DVD set, containing all 14 episodes (including the feature-length pilot episode), is priced at $39.98 SRP. No extras have been announced.

Obviously, I'm a big fan of the series, which starred Gregory Harrison, Heather Menzies and Donald Moffat, and am eager to get my hands on this set on Tuesday. Personally, I'm going to try and pick it up at my favorite video dealer, but if you can't find it close to home, Amazon is currently offering it at around $27 bucks. Logan's Run: Complete Series

•   Stats: Even without regular updates, traffic remained reasonably steady here at Space: 1970 over the last two months, and it appears some new Star Kids have joined the Alliance. We're up to nearly 400 followers here on Blogger, and the Facebook Fan Page currently boasts 865 "Likes." I genuinely appreciate the support! I also want to thank every person who has used the Amazon links on this site to make purchases of vintage sci-fi on DVD/Blu-ray (and the few who've made Paypal donations - if you'd like to contribute, there's a link in the right-hand sidebar). Every little bit helps.

•  Shameless Self-Promotion: Anyone who enjoys my writing and reviews on this site should check out my DVD Late Show site, where I have been reviewing B-movies, cult films and genre television shows on DVD and Blu-ray disc since 2005. Among the over 700 reviews are plenty of Space: 1970-era favorites, like Battle Beyond The Stars, Damnation Alley, Starcrash, The Starlost, the Space: 1999 Blu-rays, and many more.

• That's it for now. April's Space Babe will be posted shortly....

Captain's bLog: 0206.12

• So, here we are, a month and more into 2012, and Space: 1970 is zipping along at lightspeed. January received more unique hits and page views - by far - than any other month since launching this site a bit over two years ago. I find that quite gratifying. It's nice to know that I'm not alone in my love for this stuff, and that a small oasis of snark-and-cyncism-free genre nostalgia can actually survive on the 'net.

I only wish that I had more time to write more posts of substance - essays, detailed book and DVD reviews, "Favorite Episodes," "Fave Fives," etc. - and didn't need to rely so much on purely image-based posts. Realistically, the posts wherein I share scans of movie posters, TV ads, comic book covers and such get just as many views (and more comments, usually) than the posts that I labor over for days or weeks. But that doesn't mean that I'm satisfied. I mean, sure, this is a nostalgia/retro blog, but I would like it to be a little bit more than a virtual scrapbook.

Unfortunately, that kind of blogging takes a lot more time, energy and focus, three things that have been in short supply around here of late.

All that said, I do hope to get these four articles posted by the end of February: a look at the 70s Buck Rogers series that never was, a "Favorite Episodes" post on Battlestar Galactica's "Gun On Ice Planet Zero," a "Fave Five" list of sci-fi fighter ships, and the long-promised review of the 1975 television pilot, Strange New World, the conclusion to the Gene Roddenberry/Warner Brothers "PAX Trilogy."

Since it's a short month, I guess I better get writing....

•  I did a little maintenance to the site this past weekend. I replaced a couple of defunct videos and added some images to old posts. Specifically, I uploaded additional new poster scans for Saturn 3, Silent Running and Flesh Gordon. Check 'em out.

• STATS: Here on Blogger, Space: 1970 now has 375 "Followers," while over on the Facebook fan page, the number of users who "Like"  S:70 is now over 800. And in January, thanks to the popularity of the Frazetta Galactica posts, the site received over 40,000 page views - as noted above, marking the best visitor numbers the blog has ever achieved. Thanks to everyone for your support and a hearty welcome to new readers! I hope you'll stick around.

•  February's "Space Babe" will be posted later this week.... stay tuned.